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Up-to-the-minute jumping-off points for sermons, linking the reading to the latest news and global issues

Why wait for heaven?

On earth as it is in heaven – how do we bring hope into the worries of now?

Context

In a week of gloomy news and predictions of apocalyptic food price rises, we are badly in need of hope. Inflation hit 9% this week, its highest level for 40 years. Meanwhile, energy bills are increasing exponentially and the threat of recession looms. For some people, the cost of living crisis is also a crisis of mental health and well being. For the least well off, there is the looming risk of debt or destitution, with as many as half a million more children soon to be living in poverty.

As Boris Johnson is accused of ‘just not getting it’ as people turn down potatoes in the food banks because they can’t afford the energy to cook them and ministers dispense patronising ‘advice’ about budgeting to people whose money cannot meet their bills, here are some real life stories about everyday deprivations:

 

Ideas for sermons or interactive talks

As Government ministers are coming under increasing pressure to intervene over the cost of living crisis, how secure do any of us feel about the future? It is pertinent that the passage from Revelation was directed at those whose lives were under threat? Reading about the tree full of fruit in season by the crystal stream, and the imagery of rest and refreshment, the contrast with today’s challenges and distress could not be more stark. Is it all pie in the sky or is there a calling to all of us to be so set on this vision of beauty and healing for all that we also set our hearts on doing whatever we can to give people a taste of healing, of heavenly fruit and a drink from the crystal stream here and now? As John Bell once wrote in a challenging and provoking hymn, heaven shall not wait.

Heaven shall not wait
for triumphant Hallelujahs,
when earth has passed and we reach another shore:
Jesus is Lord
in our present imperfection;
his power and love are for now; and then for evermore.
Graham Maule and John L Bell (Wild Goose Worship Book)

You might like to read the whole hymn and ponder its direct challenge to us. Rather than simply losing ourselves in wonder at the beauty of God’s dwelling place perhaps we are also invited to contemplate the work we need to do to feed the hungry and to wipe the tears from people’s eyes. Do we also need to look at the Jesus we are communicating and rediscover the earthly human Jesus who came to make a home among us - to be with us in all the mess and fragility of this world?

In the passage God says ’I am making all things new’ (Revelation 21.5). ‘I am making’ not ‘I have made' – it is an ongoing action of God’s recreative power, but it needs us to participate in God’s loving purposes for human flourishing. By faith, by prayer, and also by creative acts of seeking after justice in order for the new creation to be seen on earth and in our midst.

The cost of living crisis is a crisis for all of us whether we are immediately impacted or not. Churches are struggling to find funds to heat their huge buildings, but may become a refuge for people who have no means to stay warm at home. Should this be part of our mission: to make our spaces available warm and welcoming when colder weather comes and people cannot afford heating?

Some families are going to be plunged into ever deceasing cycles of despair. Our gospel of hope will have to be accompanied by actions to alleviate distress and to help people when they can no longer afford to help themselves.

Should the church be political? We are going to find it hard not to be in a situation where standards in public life are at an all time low, trust in politicians is shaky and Government policy is failing (flailing?) as people struggle. God’s priorities, however, are steadfastly fixed on the poor. When structures and leaders around us have no answers, we as church will need to find a voice, some courage to speak truth to power and wellsprings of compassion to be truly on the side of those who are suffering the most. We may worry about ‘sides’ or about ‘left and right’- but there is basic human decency and love for our neighbour that should transcend what politicians sometimes use to divide us. What resources do we have in our communities for listening to people’s anxiety, offering debt advice or providing food and essential supplies?

How does the current insecurity and pain challenge how we do mission? How central should hospitality be to the whole of our mission? Can people ever really hear our words when they are cold, hungry or homeless? The beauty of heaven is central to the Gospel and is also demonstrated by God’s radical love for the ordinariness of our lives. The banquet where all are welcome needs to be seen in the midst of the people.

 

Questions for discussion

  • This week’s reading from Revelation tells us of a place of beauty and peace, of healing and blessing. It seems so far away right now. What new ways can we find of telling the story of God’s place and what does it mean for this place to be here?
  • When people lack peace, shelter or food, what sanctuary can our churches offer to heal the hurts of living?
  • Health and well being are marks of God’s presence and kingdom as the reading from Revelation reminds us - but how can we earth this vision in our neighbourhoods?

Diane Craven is an education and spirituality consultant specialising in ministry with children and young people. She is also a Reader in the Church of England.

 

Check-in

Connecting faith with everyday, real-life issues for young people

Looking at the headlines this week, the world could seem pretty hopeless: the World Meteorological Organization is warning of the annual average global temperature temporarily reaching 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels for at least one of the next five years; the war in Ukraine seems to have divided the world; AND it’s exam season.

But look a little closer and you’ll see shoots of hope.

A single year of exceeding 1.5 °C does not mean we are past the point of no return: it does mean that we need to do more to protect our environment and, according to the United Nations, young people globally are doing just that: ‘Whether through education, science or technology, young people are scaling up their efforts and using their skills to accelerate climate action.’

The war in Ukraine has brought misery, tension and fear to many, but it has also brought opportunities for countries to come together, for families to open their homes to refugees and for countless individuals, companies and celebrities to offer help and support.

And, however they play out, God has a plan and a purpose for your life that is above and beyond your exam results.

In Revelation 22, John sees a vision of a ‘tree of life’: a symbol of hope and healing for the world. This hope will take root and grow when it’s cultivated.

This week, draw a symbol of a tree somewhere you will see it each day: whether it’s a sticky note on your mirror, drawn onto your pencil case or scrawled on your phone case. Each time you see it, remind yourself that there is always hope and that God is always in control.

Lucy Carman is a freelance writer and editor based near Manchester.

 

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